Serving Unity & Devoted to the Word

Introduction

What will make this church grow?

What will convert our lost friends and loved ones?

What will cause more churches in East Texas and beyond to be steadfastly united and vigorously healthy?

To put all this another way, what can we or any other local church do to produce unity and growth?

I’m going to show my hand early and tell you that the best and only thing we can do is preach and teach the Scriptures… and pray and trust God with the results.

In our passage today, we’re going to read about the first real problem that the first church in human history experienced, and we’re also going to read about how they went about solving that problem.

There is much wisdom and encouragement for us to gain here… And I think there is much here that will challenge and correct and instruct us as well.

Let’s turn together to Acts 6, and let’s consider the word of God for us today.

Scripture Reading

Acts 6:1–7 (ESV)

1 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution.

2 And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. 3 Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. 4 But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

5 And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. 6 These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them.

7 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.

Main Point

God unites and grows local churches by His word; therefore, word-ministry is to be prioritized, guarded, and served with devotion.

Message Outline

Growth by the Word

A Problem Materialized

A Pleasing Solution

The Emphasis of Word-Ministry

Continued Growth by the Word

Message

1) Growth by the Word

“Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number…” (v1).

Christians are “disciples”

1st use of “disciple” [brothers -> believers -> disciples] (Matt. 28:19)

In What “Days”?

During the same period when the Apostles were being arrested and threatened “not to speak in the name of Jesus” (Acts 5:40).

During the time when “every day, in the temple and from house to house, [the Apostles] did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus” (Acts 5:42).

The “Increase” is always by/of the word

Those who converted to Christianity on the day of Pentecost were “those who received [the] word” and “there were added that day about three thousand souls” (Acts 2:41).

Later, when Peter was “speaking to the people” near the temple in Jerusalem, “many of those who had heard the word believed…” and “the number… came to about five thousand” (Acts 4:1, 4).

When the Apostles were warned to “speak no more to anyone” the words about Jesus, the whole church gathered to pray for God’s help to “continue to speak [His] word with all boldness” (Acts 4:17, 29).

And at the end of our passage, the result of averting disastrous disunity and focusing on “the ministry of the word” (v4) was that the “word of God continued to increase,” and so did the “number of disciples” (v7).

2) A Problem Materialized

“Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution” (v1).

Understanding the Scene

The “Hellenists” or “Hellenistic Jews” (NASB) or “Grecian Jews” (NIV84) were more than just another language group.

Alexander the Great (356 to 323 BC) conquered the known world of his time. His kingdom stretched from the western border of modern Turkey into the land of present-day India, and from the western border of modern Egypt to the north-eastern boarder of present-day Iran.

Alexander not only conquered lands, but he also conquered peoples. His method for ruling so widely and such a diverse variety of peoples has come to be known as “Hellenization.” Hellenization was the coerced implementation of Greek culture, religion, and education.

After Alexander died, his empire was divided among his 4 top generals, and Rome eventually began taking some of the western portions of the Greek lands. But Rome, instead of replacing Greek culture, religion, and education, seemed to adopt and adapt it as its own.

“Hellenists” were ethnically Jewish, but Greek/Roman in every sense.

The “Hebrews” or “native Hebrews” (NASB) or “Hebraic Jews” (NIV84) were more than distant relatives of their Hellenized brethren.

The Maccabean Revolt (164 BC) and further Jewish victories restored Jerusalem to a Jewish theocracy in 141 BC.[1] But about 60 years before the birth of Jesus, the Roman General Pompey captured Jerusalem, and subjected the Jews to foreign governance yet again, this time Rome.[2]

Jewish leaders and many Jewish people unwillingly tolerated their Roman governors and the Roman society which engulfed them. But some Jewish people simply became Roman or “Hellenized.” This was perceived as nothing short of a total betrayal (example: NT “tax-collector”).

During Jesus’ earthly ministry and during the early years of Christianity, those Jews who had maintained their Jewish identity (culture, religion, and language [Aramaic at that time[3]]) had no love for those Jews who had Hellenized (either by expedience or by coercion).

Though, the problem in Acts 6 seems an accidental administrative error.

Hellenized converts were the minority in the Jerusalem church, but Luke mentioned no nefarious intentions on the part of the majority.

A real Opportunity for Disunity and Division

The “daily distribution” was an important testimony of Christian love.

That anyone was being neglected in this distribution was a true error.

The “Hellenists” could have easily assumed malicious intentions since it would have certainly reflected the norms outside the church.

The “Hebrews” could have easily adopted a self-protective and tribal position against their societal and political enemies.

The whole church could have easily accused the Apostles.

Such Opportunities Exist among Churches of every age

I’m not being cared for as I should be… I’d just rather participate in a church where the people are like me… His/her family/people did my family/people wrong! I can’t just pretend like that didn’t happen!

3) A Pleasing Solution

“And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, ‘It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty…’” (v2-3).

The Gathered Church

It is popular today for many to emphasize the small and informal “house to house” preaching and teaching in the early church (Acts 5:42).

But these same folks seem to overlook the obvious occasions when the whole church assembled, even in the multiple thousands (like Acts 6).

In our passage:

The Apostles “summoned the full number of the disciples” (v2).

The plan they came up with “pleased the whole gathering” (v5).

An Informative Passage on Polity

There is much in the book of Acts that we don’t expect to experience or implement today (the Apostolic period was indeed unique).

However, we do see here a display (indicative) of the kind of practices we are instructed to implement (imperative) elsewhere in Scripture.

The Apostles lead as elders/overseers: summoning the church to gather, making a plan, calling upon the church to act, and directing the appointment of practical administrator-servants (i.e., proto-deacons).

The congregation follows as glad and thoughtful participants: picking 7 men to serve, recognizing that prayer and the ministry of the word ought to be guarded, and even choosing Hellenized men to serve.

I believe this passage aligns perfectly with the polity teachings we read in 1 Cor. 5; Eph. 4:10-16; Heb. 13:7, 17; 1 Pet. 5:1-4; and elsewhere.

The appointment of Servants

The word διακονος is not in the passage, however deaconing (διακονεω, verb) and service or ministry (διακονια, noun) are prevalent.

Christians have understood this passage to depict “proto-deacons.”

1 Timothy 3 expands the character qualifications, but this passage is the clearest example of the distinction of roles between elders and deacons.

Note the division of responsibility or division of labor.

The Apostles were serving as the elders/pastors of the church in Jerusalem; and they were to “devote [themselves] to prayer and to the ministry of the word” (v4).

The appointed servants (proto-deacons) were to dutifully tend to the “daily distribution” (v1) and to “serve tables” (v2).

Matt Smethurst, in his book “Deacons,” lists 3 things that deacons must do (p. 73-94):

(1) Spot and meet tangible needs; (2) Protect and promote church unity; and (3) Serve and support the ministry of the elders

Note the emphasis on character.

The Apostles wanted the church members to “pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom…” (v3).

After addressing the character qualifications of elders, we read, “Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless” (8-10).

Note the overt expression of charity, unity, and love

“5 And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. 6 These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them” (v5-6).

All were “Hellenists,” except “Nicolaus” who was not even Jewish!

4) The Emphasis of Word-Ministry

“And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, ‘It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.’” (v2-4).

Word-ministry Prioritized

“It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables” (v2).

A practical need among the congregation (individually or collectively) must never be allowed to intrude on a local church’s word-ministry.

This has implications for what we all should expect our budget to look like.

This has implications for what we all should expect “the church” to do.

This has implications for the sense of responsibility some of us might need to feel to rise up and to meet various needs (members and institution).

If the senior pastor and/or the other pastors/elders are still required to be an administrative switchboard for many of our church’s practical needs, then this steals time and care away from weightier matters.

Word-ministry Guarded

“pick out from among you seven men… whom we will appoint to this duty” (v3).

How can you, the members of this church, prioritize and guard the word-ministry of FBC Diana?

You can tell me or one of the other elders about your eagerness to serve.

Word-ministry Served with Devotion

“we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word” (v4

Guarding the time of the pastors/elders frees them to be devoted, and good pastors/elders will indeed devote themselves to such things.

5) Continued Growth by the Word

“And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith” (v7).

The word of God increased

Note that it was “the word of God” which increased, and then, so too, “the number of disciples” increased as well.

Our Perennial Temptation

We want to see “the number of the disciples multiplied greatly.”

So, we look for some formula by which to manufacture these results.

But when preaching and teaching “the word of God” does not produce the numerical results we want, we assume that we must be missing some other ingredient.

Common Church Growth Methodologies

Gary MacIntosh in his book There’s Hope for Your Church says, “God has told us the what, ‘Go therefore and make disciples.’ It is up to us to determine the how” (p. 118).

McIntosh explains that what every church needs is a vision. He says, “One way to understand vision is to see it as the intersection of the pastor’s leadership passion, the passion and gifts of the congregation, and the community needs” (p. 74).

Robert Dale bases his approach on the same assumption in his book How to Help Your Church Come Alive to Dream Again. He says, “We have no explicit theology of the visible church” (p. 27).

Dale emphasizes the need for vision as well, saying, “a new vision of the ministry your church can develop is the shortest route to a healthy ministry in a story worth telling” (p. 42).

A historical reminder

Martin Luther said, “I opposed indulgences and all papists, but never by force. I simply taught, preached, wrote God's Word… And then, while I slept or drank Wittenberg beer with my [friend] Philip, the Word so greatly weakened the papacy that never a prince or emperor did such damage to it. I did nothing: the Word did it all.”[4]

A present reality

When was it that you have grown the most as a follower of Jesus Christ?

When was it that you have seen your kids and grandkids converted and matured in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ?

When was it that you saw your friends and family members converted, turned away from their love of sin and turned toward a new and lasting love of Jesus and His people?

Has it not been during those times when someone (or many someones) took the time to simply explain and apply the word of God?

A call to perseverance and patience

Mark Dever wrote, “God promises His Word will not go out without accomplishing His purpose. But we may not be around to see the harvest from seeds that we plant. As Charles Bridges (a great nineteenth-century Anglican pastor) said, ‘The seed may lie under the clods till we lie there, and then spring up’ (Christian Ministry, p. 75). Some sow, and others reap (John 4:36–38), but God deserves the praise for all the growth that happens.”[5]

Endnotes

[1] https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-hasmonean-dynasty [2] https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/timeline-for-the-history-of-jerusalem-4500-bce-present [3] https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hebrew-languageand https://www.britannica.com/topic/Aramaic-language [4] https://www.reformation21.org/mos/1517/the-word-did-it-all [5] https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/god-given-growth

Bibliography

Calvin, John, and Henry Beveridge. Commentary upon the Acts of the Apostles. Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2010. Print.

Peterson, David G. The Acts of the Apostles. Grand Rapids, MI; Nottingham, England: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009. Print. The Pillar New Testament Commentary.

Polhill, John B. Acts. Vol. 26. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992. Print. The New American Commentary.

Sproul, R. C., ed. The Reformation Study Bible: English Standard Version (2015 Edition). Orlando, FL: Reformation Trust, 2015. Print.